08/30/2024
Today is National Overdose awareness day.
Like breast cancer awareness uses the color pink to signify support, Overdose Awareness uses purple.
I don’t have a problem with the color purple. I mean, it was a great book, a good movie, Purple Rain is one of my favorite Prince albums and I’m even down with Barney, but, I don’t have any purple in my closet. What can I say, I’m more of a flannel kinda guy.
Part of the reason I don’t have a wardrobe full of purple is that I’m color blind, and it’s damn near impossible for me to distinguish purple from many shades of blue and even some shades of red. Don’t even get me started on light purple, because sometimes that just looks white to me. Ask Wesley Mack Bryant about how he learned I was color blind!
In honor of Overdose Awareness, I needed a purple shirt. Me being me, I waited until yesterday to actually start looking for one. To my credit, I didn’t think it would be that hard to find a purple shirt…boy was I wrong.
Despite my 14 year old daughter’s exhaustive attempts to help me, I hadn’t been able to find an acceptable purple shirt to wear to work today. So, in a last ditch effort, I ran into a Marshall’s on my way into work. I didn’t have a lot of faith that I would find one, but I thought I’d make the effort.
As I stood there, looking at the racks of T-shirts and Polos, I was struck by a sudden and unfortunate reality…I’m color blind. I was in a store looking for a purple shirt and I didn’t have a damn clue what I was looking for, or at least, I didn’t know how to find what I was looking for. I saw lots of shirts that might have been purple, but they might also have been blue. In desperation, I sucked up my pride, looked around and found what appeared to be a nice lady, otherwise minding her own business. Literally with hat in hand, I humbly asked her for help. At first, she looked at me like I might try and kidnap her, but after I explained to her that I needed a purple shirt and that I was color blind, etc. she smiled and was happy to help me.
She was awesome!
I’m sure, like the rest of us, she had a busy day planned, places to go and people to see, but she was beyond patient with me. She spent about 15 minutes with me wondering around looking for a shirt.
During our quest, she asked me why I needed a purple shirt. I explained that it was for overdose awareness day, that I worked in the recovery field and that I myself was in recovery. She nodded her head in understanding but otherwise didn’t react much. A few minutes later she looked up and said, “I’m glad you’re getting the shirt and I’m glad you help people with addiction issues.” She then went on to explain that her brother had died from an overdose in 2022. At about that same time, she ran across a basic purple shirt! Eureka! I thanked her for her patience and kindness and we both went on our separate ways.
After I left the store, I was struck by the fact that not only had that kind lady helped me find a shirt, she reminded me that almost everyone has been impacted by addiction. Through her vulnerable share with me, she reminded me that more people than most can imagine, carry the lasting and painful scars of addiction, even those who haven’t personally been in active addiction. The longer I thought about our conversation, the more I began to realize that our meeting wasn’t accidental. She had reminded me that God works in mysterious ways.
Some might say that my interaction and exchange with that lady was simple coincidence. I don’t believe in coincidences though. I’ve lived too long, survived too many things that should have killed me, and witnessed too many miracles to believe that there is anything random about this universe.
Being in that exact store, at that precise time, on this particular day, and meeting that specific woman…that wasn’t an accident, and it certainly wasn’t a coincidence. It happened for a reason and I’m just glad I was present enough to experience it.
So, to that very nice lady that helped me find a purple shirt, thank you! You did more than help me find a shirt, you helped me see God, and you helped me remember that what I do matters.
There are no coincidences, just plans you aren’t aware of.
